Bafana coach Hugo Broos better have a plan for Afcon. If what we saw in the home and away qualifiers against Liberia is anything to go by, then Bafana Bafana are in for one hell of a high jump at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Ivory Coast.
The South Africans qualified for the tournament by the skin of their teeth after they were given a major scare by a Liberia side whom, many would argue, are not neat on the eye, football wise.
The Liberians, who could have been easily mistaken for body builders, almost out-muscled Bafana out of the Afcon.
Broos’ boys survived a hostile encounter with the physical Lone Stars literally kicking their way to Afcon until Mihlali Mayambela pounced late and scored the winner, sending the partisan and vociferous home supporters into a state of mourning.
In the first leg, Liberia staged such a fightback that Broos snubbed a media conference and almost threw his assistant Helman Mkhalele under the bus. Broos’s attempted hospital pass to the likeable Mkhalele was blocked by the toyi-toying media at the stadium, who demanded that the weeping Belgian avail himself.
The relief after the second leg in Monrovia was palpable. The final whistle from the referee drew one of the most animated celebrations from the players.
The players grabbed Broos and threw him in the air as if they had won the tournament – such was the excitement, and it was understandable.
While we are happy that South Africa will be again rubbing shoulders with Africa’s best, there’s just a dash of fear and worry as to how far Bafana have fallen behind in the pecking order and how they will fare against walking man-mountains of the continent at the tournament. The standard at last year’s tournament was incredibly impressive and the entire world was glued to their TV sets when a Sadio Mane-led Senegal defeated Mo Salah’s Egyptians via the lottery of penalty kicks.
We also saw how significantly improved the likes of Mali, Guinea, Gabon and Malawi have been. They showed glimpses of development when they reached the Last 16 stage.
Gambia and Equatorial Guinea advanced to the quarter-finals and Burkina Faso reached the semifinal stage – perfect evidence that there are no longer easy teams in the competition.
So, if Broos does not come with a solid plan, it’s going to be raining sjamboks on his young team.
Broos may want to start with his captain. Ronwen Williams needs to be given competition for the goalkeeper’s gloves at Mamelodi Sundowns and the national team. He seems a little complacent because his name is the first on the team sheets of both Bafana and Masandawana.
The three goals he conceded against Liberia leave a lot to be desired and he needs to be kept on his toes by his deputies.
The last time Bafana featured at Afcon was in 2019 when they managed to outfox Egypt – things were still a little easier four years ago. If we are going to huff and puff against Liberia, how are we going to leave an impression at Afcon?
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